By Terence Dooley

BoxingScene.com spoke to Denmark’s Mikkel Kessler, who sat ringside for Carl Froch’s return to knockout form against Lucian Bute at a rocking and raucous Nottingham Arena on Staurday night.  The three-time super middleweight world champion and current WBC Silver light-heavyweight world titlist, who picked up the WBC’s latest “world” title belt by knocking out America’s Allan Green in four rounds last Saturday night, has left the door open for a return to 168lbs if he can secure a showdown with Froch, who now holds the IBF belt after stopping Bute in the fifth, or his preferred target Andre Ward, the universally recognised world champion at the weight.

Although ostensibly referred to as a 175lber last week, Kessler weighed in at 169½ for the victory over Green – in which the Dane was floored in the first only to hammer his opponent to the canvas courtesy of a stunning left hook to end the argument – and still looks every inch a 168lber.

“I was very happy with the Green fight,” said Kessler to BoxingScene.com.  “In the fight, I tried some of my strategies – the left hook was working perfect.  I got hit with a right hand, but it wasn’t that bad.  It happened early, maybe I had a bit of ring rust, as you call it, but I wasn’t hurt.  I went at him right after, so wasn’t in any trouble.  I feel like I’m back.  I trained hard for the fight.  It was a great win, a great comeback.

“Sometimes it is difficult getting the fights at super middleweight, but I have no problem going up to light-heavyweight for fights if I need to.  I am ready to go wherever I need.  Andre Ward in a rematch would be the perfect fight for me.  I want that one very much.  Or a rematch with Carl who I had a very good fight with.”

However, a return with Ward would not make sense for “Son Of God” given his dominant showing in their fight and decisive points win over Froch, who dropped a narrow decision to Kessler in their April 2010 war in Denmark.  Therefore, the likely route back for the “Viking Warrior” could see him lock horns with the now red-hot Froch to try and snare Ward.

“Of course I want Ward again,” said Kessler, 45-2 (34).  “Everything went wrong [in his November 2009 eleventh-round technical decision defeat], there were some big head butts and many, many problems in that fight, so I would like to fight him again.”

As for a tilt at Froch’s IBF belt, Kessler has fought in the U.K. before, a decision defeat to Joe Calzaghe in at the Millenium Stadium in Wales in November 2007 – he did not rule out returning to these shores. 

“Maybe, I don’t know – let’s see what the future says,” he said

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